Dark Star Rising
by Rilaisseth
Summary: As Lord Voldemort and the Dark continue their rise, a new school year at Hogwarts begins. Choices must be made, friendships made and broken, and enemies eventually confronted. The Prophecy led us here, to an unimaginable end.
1. Prologue

(A/N: Hello Everyone. This is my first chi–, errr, I mean fanfic. I hope you enjoy reading it. The plot will develop a lot more from here, and I think that the story, in general, will be fairly long. I am going to try to deal with most characters in JK Rowling's series. There will be new relationships, and we can't forget about 'He Must Not Be Named' can we? I am trying to focus the story on the latter. I am not a huge fan of romance, and I really suck at writing it. So if that's what you're looking for you've come to the wrong place. Well, what are we waiting for? On with the tale.)

Thank you to: Ankha, QDramaStr, Slytherin Girl, AngelZash, Tantz, Lady Reaper of the Shadows, and DizzyTizzy, for inspiring me to write a fic of my own. And to Nari Dragon-girl and hyparly4suger, for keeping me relatively sane! All hail the Chickens – right? You guys are the best!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that JK Rowling owns. She is the mastermind behind Harry Potter and I am not. Although I do admit it would be nice. I do own the few new characters and that will come up later and the plot. Please ask if you want to borrow anything from my story. I would do the same for anyone else.

Author: Princess of Mirkwood

Title: Dark Star Rising

All other information can most likely be found in my bio.

~Prologue~

They come for me now. The ones whom I once called friends. So long ago that time seems now. A time where 'The Boy Who Lived' filled the hearts of so many people with hope. Hope indeed. Hope that the Dark would be overturned, and all would be as it should. False hope. Resting on a soul that would never be able to handle the awe and loyalty that was presented to it. 

It plainly could not cope, and was replaced by another. Another that saw the errors its predecessor possessed. That _one_ was myself. They never knew or suspected of course, the fools. Blinded by their devotion and the Darkness; _so_ easily overcome. Only in their wildest dreams could they doubt their saviour. But I made dreams come true to fix my past. I saw the power within me growing stronger day by day, hour by hour, and I asked myself: strong enough to do what? 

Soon the answer came. Not clear at first, no, not clear at all, and only with the help of a close acquaintance; but gradually I understood the path I was to take, and began the journey that was set out for me at the very beginning and that led me here, to where I am now.

Among traitors, past friends, and the painful memories of my past, I wait as my demise is being planned before my eyes. Allegedly helpless, I have only to wait for my captors to make their final attempt on my life, for that will be when the fun really begins. They've no idea of what they are in for. 

~End of Prologue~

A/N: And so it begins. Stay tuned for more. I really hope you all liked this, and I apologise for it being so short, it was hard to write; I've never done anything like it before. I also thought it was more fun than the first chapter I originally posted. _That_ chapter will hopefully be re-posted in a week, after I make some changes. So while you're waiting, go review! Flames are accepted, and will be used to burn "Professor" Umbridge alive! Thanks for taking the time to read this! 

-L


	2. Time Stands Still

(A/N: Well here it is, after some long months of editing, rewriting, writer's block, and quite a bit of procrastination Chapter 1 has finally been completed. *throws confetti* 'Dark Star Rising' is being developed as I write, and so I apologize about the delays that will come between chapters. I swear on all that is misinterpretable and orange that this fic will not be abandoned. *glares at Pixie-Sarah* Of course, I couldn't have written this without the help of my good friends hyparly4suger, Nari Dragon-girl, and Pixie-Sarah, who, despite waving torches and glaring many times during the past few months, have kept me focused to some extent. Thanks dudes! And now without further ado, I present to you the next instalment of 'Dark Star Rising'…) 

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that JK Rowling owns. She is the mastermind behind Harry Potter and I am not. I do own the few new characters and that will come up later and the plot. Please ask if you want to borrow anything from my story. I would do the same for anyone else.

~Chapter 1: Time Stands Still~

Lily and James' son sat silhouetted against the full moon at the tower window. Through the glass the snowy ground gleamed eerily. Aside from sleep, this was the only time Harry could find solitude away from the hustle and bustle of class, quidditch, and friends. Night had become his precious time to be alone, reflect and sort out his thoughts.

A cloud passed over the moon causing the stars to shine brilliantly against their backdrop of darkness. But in Harry's mind it wasn't two twinkling stars that caught his eye, but a pair of gleaming eyes in the shadows: his first glimpse of Sirius on Privet Drive.

_Why? _thought Harry _Why did you have to leave me?! What did I do to deserve losing my family twice?_ The memories of that fateful day still continued to plague him. Even now, one and a half years later, Harry's dreams at night were still of his godfather and the details were always as clear as they were the first night after his death. 

_Sirius_

A solitary tear trickled down his cheek. Sirius Black was the closest Harry had ever been to having a true family. Rage and frustration filled his mind. Inside he knew he would never be able to forgive himself, Headmaster Dumbledore, or Professor Lupin for simply letting Sirius fall through the veiled arch in the Department of Mysteries.

_Wasn't it just seconds before that I watched Dumbledore pull an escaping Death Eater off the steps with an effortless flick of his wand? He didn't kill any in that room that deserved death or save the ones on his own side! I didn't. Even get. To say. _Goodbye._ Is his mistake of telling me the truth once it was too late, supposed to console me? _He guessed it was meant to. _Not that I truly care; nothing can bring Sirius back._

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The summer following his godfather's death Harry thought could be much more-- tolerable at least. Which it was of course with the promise of the Order's protection and the impression his newfound friends had left on Uncle Vernon. For the first two weeks Harry wrote, promised, to Mad Eye Moody and friends describing long days of "family outings" to the beach and whatnot. Also detailing countless rounds of chess against an enchanted Wizard's Chess set courtesy of Fred and George. He owled many letters to Ron and Hermione making plans to meet at Hogsmeade the Last week of July. Afterwards, they would all stay at the Weasleys' until it was time to return to school. All in all, things had finally started looking better for Harry. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Back at Hogwarts not much had changed; classes continued as usual with one exception Dumbledore had approved the concept behind the Dumbledore's Army group with the Ministry of Magic, offering a specialized Defence Against the Dark Arts class. It was offered only to Sixth Years and above therefore upsetting younger DA members and hopefuls like Dennis Creevey. The age limit was only put in place as a precautionary measure when parents threatened to demand the removal of the class after hearing of subjects the course was to cover.

Affectionately labelled as _AT_ (auror training), advanced DADA became the most popular class at Hogwarts. Even the teachers insisted on all having a chance to teach a week or two of it, and posted a schedule in the staff room. Professor Snape was also given the opportunity to teach for awhile, continuing his abuse of the Gryffindors whenever possible and seeming to enjoy every minute of it. 

By the time students returned after Christmas the staff had devised numerous safety and emergency procedures to be followed. They covered everything from fire and floods, to a full fledged invasion and were charmed into small books for the students to keep with them at all times. They started to fully realize the threat of war, and a nervousness began to creep through the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff houses. Slytherins only laughed at their peers' growing fear with amusement. 

No changes or additions were made to the teaching staff unlike previous years. The Headmaster seemed reluctant to let outsiders invade the close-knit administrative circle. During the next few years the Order could have no possibilities for information leaking out. They planned to stay quiet until they had an open window for attack. But they had to wait for the enemy to strike first; observe, then move.

Outside in the wizarding world tension had continuously built since the return of Lord Voldemort was revealed. Anticipation and rumours murmured in the streets day after day. There seemed no doubt that something would happen soon. The world waited in nervous patience for a year and when the next summer finally came, the air was still. Fear turned to relief, normal lives were resumed and the glass was once again half full. 

Harry remembered the front page headline of the Daily Prophet the day he finished his sixth year; 'Ministry to be trusted?' _Well, _Harry had thought, _maybe not …maybe we were all wrong… _But Harry knew very well what he had seen a year ago and that Voldemort was a living threat. _And it's my job to destroy him, _he reminded himself, _or be killed by the same man, no – _creature _who__ killed my parents._ Sometimes Harry almost wished that he hadn't survived with 'only a scar'. It would have been much easier not to go through everything from the last 17 years being watched and criticised. After withstanding too many battles, some wounds will never heal. 

~End of Chapter 1~

A/N: Hope you enjoyed reading Chapter 1! If you did, please click on that purple button down there and review. If you didn't, still click on the purple button and tell me why. Thanks for reading, see you next chapter!

-Rílaisseth, Dínedhel, Elf of Too Many Names

            * Nai Valaraukar tye-mátar *


	3. Dreams

[a/n: Welcome, and welcome back, to Dark Star Rising! Hope you all enjoy this next chapter.]

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that J.K. Rowling owns. She is the mastermind behind Harry Potter and I am not. However, I do own the few new characters and that will come up later, and my plot. Please ask if you want to borrow anything from this story.

Chapter 2: Dreams

Darkness. Then the flickering orange embers he knew so well. Each lighting and fading in a matter of seconds. They were always the precursor. Yet something was wrong, the embers were more abundant than usual and interspersed among them preciously few emerald cinders glimmered ominously. The void swirled in innumerable shades of black banishing gravity and disrupting orientation. It was a place outside of time, containing the past, present, and future. He never knew how long he stayed there, motionless but for blinking as streams of orange light penetrated his eyes.

Light. So strong and pure it shimmered with every imaginable colour. It flashed across his vision and there was no turning back.

Gravity tugged at his feet slamming his body hard into the ground. Wearily he sat up and struggled to focus on his surroundings; tried to restrain the pain emanating from his leg. He was in the midst of a shadowy graveyard. Weeds and moss crept over the tombstones seeking to choke the last hint of life out of them. A large yew tree partially blocked the view of a small church to the right. Faint atop a hill to the left stood a fine old house. Cedric Diggory lay beside him.

"Where are we?" said Harry rhetorically. Cedric shook his head and helped Harry to his feet. They both drew their wands squinting tensely through the shadows. "Someone's coming."

A short hooded figure pressed toward them; it carried a bundle in its arms. Harry winced as pain shot through his scar. Falling to his knees in breathless agony he lost grip on his wand.

"No," he whispered, "No… Stop him…" He struggled to rise but another wave of pain seared through him.

"Kill the spare."

"_Avada__ Kedavra!!_"

As green light blazed around him, Harry lifted his head in time to see Cedric, eyes widened in shock, pitched backward by the force of the curse. Before he hit the ground his already cold dead eyes met Harry's'.

"Why?" mouthed Cedric.

"_Expelliarmus!"_

_"Avada Kedarva!"_

Red and green light melted into gold as the duelers rose into the air. This time they did not drift down again, but rose higher. Less than twenty feet away from the young boy the Dark Lord gripped his shaking wand tighter, conquering its spasms in seconds. Harry's only quivered more fiercely.

"You will never be strong enough _Potter_! Not while I still live." The Death Eaters cheered wildly below. "You are just like your parents; your father's hair, Lily's eyes… and both their weaknesses."

"My mother died to save me," hissed Harry, tightening his grip, "I have her love and protection running through my blood." The Dark Lord laughed quietly as if told a joke.

"As do I now, thanks to you. Imagine how disappointed she would be knowing how you gave it to me."

"I did not—"

"I would hardly say you made an effort to stop me Potter. Not a single cowardly charm or incantation. One would almost think you didn't care…" He trailed off in thought, "What a pity it will be for them to watch me kill you. _Slowly_."

The tremors of the young wizard's wand reverberated from fingertip to shoulder as his confidence succumbed to mortal fear. He could not let it end like this; there had to be a way out. In seeming answer to his helplessness the Dark Lord wrenched his thin wand away from the connection of shimmering thread with force enough to send Harry wheeling back.

His vision swam murkily out of focus as the ground rushed eagerly to meet his gravity stricken body. A woman's shriek pieced through his deaf ears accompanying impact with the unyielding earth. He sensed the intrusion of stones into his flesh and the agony that overcame his body with intensity never dreamt of. But as terrifying as it seemed the scream of the ghostly woman carried relief to him. He recognized it from a past long ago; it was for him.

"Harry…… Harry……"

"Harry! Wake up mate! C'mon, get up." Harry awoke with a start gasping for breath and clawing at the sheets that were now strewn about him and the floor. Ron Weasley stood above his friend continuing to urge him out of bed.

"We're going to be late Harry." Ron pleaded, "We've got Professor Snape first class today; Gryffindor's already lost 30 points this week!"

"Ron… Voldemort, he… the screams… falling…" stuttered Harry wearily.

"Must have been some dream, 'cause you sure were restless last night. But we can talk later; you've got to get up!"

"Just… a dream…" With a sigh Harry fell back onto the bed. Ron grabbed a nearby pillow and raised it over his head preparing to knock some sense into the stubborn boy. Unluckily for Ron, the pillow stayed where it was in mid-air as he lowered it towards Harry's head. He spun around in bafflement and received a solid w_homp_ as the pillow hit him solidly in the face. Harry put down his wand and grinned.

"Alright, let's get going Ron, I'm famished," he said pulling on his school clothes.

"I'm sorry to hear that mate," responded Ron. Noting Harry's quizzical expression he explained, "You've missed breakfast."

Harry laughed, "Oh, is that all? No need to be sorry." Harry pulled out a handful of chocolate frogs from his trunk and tossed one at Ron, "I'm always prepared."

He wished it were true.

End of Chapter 2

[a/n: So ends the not so pointless, pointless chapter. I hope everyone is enjoying this humble beginning. You all have my word that the third chapter will be more substantial.

A huge thank you goes out to the following people:

Snow-Dawg, Nari Dragon-girl, hyparly4suger, edgy wedgy, shaolon29730, The Lady Reaper of the Shadows, spirit, and cough Aranel.

Your reviews are appreciated sooo much! turns to those who have not reviewed It only takes a second to let an author know what your thoughts are on their writing. So please, if you read, review.]


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